BOY WONDER: Inside Dowman's rise as Arsenal prodigy gives Arteta taste of the future with sensational showing against Ipswich after breakthrough year

Max Dowman is intent on breaking records with every appearance.

This time, Dowman became only the second 16-year-old to score a brace for a Premier League side since Wayne Rooney in 2002. His double for Arsenal in the Carabao Cup tie at Ipswich showcased his prodigious talent which has got the potential to take him to the very top for club and country.

Dowman is already the youngest scorer and title winner in Premier League history. The youngest player to appear in a Champions League knock-out match.

But, actually, this is nothing new for the Arsenal wonderkid who has been exceeding expectations since he was first spotted at the tender age of just four. Dowman, whose family live in Essex, was running round six year olds at a village pitch in Kelvedon Hatch and, even then, it was obvious that his super power was running with the ball.

He stood out a mile because of his dribbling ability, his lovely left foot and the way that, even at the young age, he struck the ball. It was exquisite.

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Premier League clubs cannot bring kids in until they are five and they do so with the ultimate aim of then signing them at the first opportunity when they turn nine years old. And even when he started going in to Arsenal on a regular basis, he was dazzling academy coaches who could not believe he was just five. He shone even against older kids who - don’t forget - were pretty good themselves if they were at Arsenal.

The likes of West Ham, Chelsea and Tottenham all wanted Dowman but Arsenal had the trump card. His family are all Arsenal fans. When Chelsea were sniffing round him a while back, his dad Rob took to social media to say: “Arsenal are our club.”

Arsenal’s academy is producing a rich vein of kids - Ethan Nwaneri, Myles Lewis-Skelly and Marli Salmon - and it is regarded as world class when it comes to developing and nurturing young talent.

Other clubs may be better at the business side of academy - producing kids and selling them on - but Arsenal’s recent success rate speaks for itself when it comes to outstanding youngsters.

Every kid needs a huge degree of luck to make it. One injury can completely derail them. They also need a strong support network behind them. You only have to look at Jude and Jobe Bellingham to understand the value of family. Not just one kid to make it a top European club. But two. That is a tribute to their upbringing and their values.

It is the same with Dowman. People at Arsenal talk glowingly about his dad Rob - who is a hugely successful businessman in his own right - and mum Caroline plus his whole family. They are right behind him - but in the right, supportive way.

When Dowman signed professional terns for Arsenal, his dad posted a picture of the scout who discovered him and said: “Proud day for us. Nothing would have been possible without this guy. Thank you Johnny Knight.”

Knight is a hugely respected scout, a top guy who knows youth football inside out and never seeks the limelight. But some families get carried away and forget how it started. The Dowmans didn’t.

The Dowmans keep Max grounded. He is good-looking, smart (he was still at school while training and playing for Arsenal), clearly a brilliant footballer and Adidas flew him out to New York during the World Cup. He has starred in an advert already.

But even amid the post-match scramble outside grounds, he makes sure he signs autographs and his family are known for being friendly, generous and down-to-earth among the hardcore of Arsenal fans who travel home and away. No wonder Arsenal fans love Max already.

His double at Ipswich - particularly his first - showed his talent. Running with the ball, dribble, switch of feet and a stunning finish. His wonder goal against Everton, breaking from his own half to score, was one of the best moments of last season.

That was also the moment he announced himself to the wider football world. A few days later, Thomas Tuchel - announcing his next England squad last March - was being asked about whether he had a chance of going to the World Cup.

It was too soon. But you can bet he will not have to wait much longer. Now the question for Mikel Arteta is how does he get him in the Arsenal team? You cannot hold him back much longer - even with so much talent in the Arsenal squad.

His best position really is in the middle as a No10. That is Arsenal’s future. But he can play deeper, wide right coming in on his left foot and on the other flank. Even the best start wide and come inside.

Dowman is destined for the very top. And he is being guided there in the best possible way.